Liquid-ripener.



No. 781,528. PATENTED JAN. 31, 1905.

" A. JENSEN.

LIQUID RIPBNER,

APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. 25. 1903.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

w/ pvEss INVENTOR- yi N we Jensen v ATTORNEYS.

PATENTED JAN. 31, 1905.

A JENSEN. LIQUID RIPENER. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 25. 1903.

3 SHEETS- SHEET 2.

' WITNESSES} //v VENTQR )aye 1223226622 I A TTORNE i s.

h following is a specification.

Patented January 31, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

AAGE J DNSEN, OF TOPEKA, KANSAS.

'. LIQUID-RIPENER.

SPECIFIGATIDN forming part of Letters Patent No. 781,528, dated January31, 1905.

7 Application filed September 25, 1903. Serial No. 174.588-

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known thatiI, AAGE JENSEN, of Topeka, in the county'of Shawnee and State of Kansas, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Liquid-Ripeners, of which the My invention is in the nature of a device for agitating and cooling or heating liquids'' as, for instance, in ripening cream preparatory to churning it; and it consists in the novel construction and arrangement of receptacle with means for cooling or heating the cream, as may be desired, and at the same time agitating it, as will be hereinafter more fully described with reference to. the drawings, in which i I Figure 1 is a vertical central section. Fig. 2 is a plan view. Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section through the hinged cover. 5, and 6 are detail sectional views showing modifications of the coils or gangs of the ro- 'tary circulation-pipes, and Fig. 7 is'an' enlarged cross-section of one of the tubes of the same. s

In the drawings, A represents the outer casing, which is constructed as a vertical cyl: inder having its outer wall composed of wood st'aves' with a lining of galvanized sheet-steel a and a layer of asbestos a between said lining and the staves. The inner wall B of the receptacle is made of tinned copper of cylindrical shape and with a conical bottom, the lowest point of the bottom being offset later,- ally from the center and communicating at E with a discharge-pipe E, having a cut-off gate At the upper edge of the receptacle there is a tapering annular breast A of sheet metal connecting the tops of the inner and outer walls, the inner wall being somewhat higher than the outer one.

Within the receptacle B andsustained upon a vertical shaft D there is carried a continuous coil 0 of parallel metal pipes. The upper end of the shaft D is made hollow and with it communicates the upper end of the coil 0.

The lower end of the shaft D is also made hollow and communicates with the lower end Figs. 4,-

-and loose pulley J J.

I ings of the coil (7, the middle part of the shaft D being filled or closed by one or more transverse partitions d between the opposite ends of the coil. The sections of the coil are made straight and pass through openings in the shaft D, made to receive and closely fit the same, so that when the shaft rotates the coil 'will rotate with it in the receptacle.

The lower end of the shaft D has screwed upon it a sleeve-bearing D, having a conical bore that closely fits with a water-tight joint terior to fit the conical bore of the sleeve D.

This hearing adjusts itself always to a Waterway between the lower end of the shaft and. coil and the space below the bottom of the rec'eptacle B and inside the outer casing.

The'cover of the receptacle consists of three sectionsa"middle section M, which is stationary and in which the upper end of the shaft D is journaled, and two side sections M M, hinged'at m to the middle section. Where the hollow'shaft D passes through the middle section said shaft is provided with a stuffingboX G, and above this the hollow shaft has rigidly attached to it a bevel-wheel which is engaged by a bevel-pinion I on a short horizontal shaft bearing at its outer end a tight I 7 By this means the hollow shaft and coil are rotated. Above the bevel-gear the hollow rotary shaft D is connected to a stationary pipe 0 by means of a .stuffing-box K. This pipe is open'at lts upper end for the reception of cold water.

About midway the height of the receptacle on one sidev there is. a noiseless steam-injection nozzle F, which receives steam through the pipe F? and through pipe connection F draws water from the space between the outer casing and the walls of the receptacle.

raised allow the cream to be introduced. These covers. are designed to fit upon the top of the receptacle with an air-tight joint, and for this tight fit as it wears, and it forms a passage- This steam-nozzle heats the water and sends 1t up and'back to the center, being deflected to this purpose the leaves of the hinge are extended at m to the edge of the cover-sections and g there are extended beyond the edge and bent downwardly and then up to form concave seats 021*, in which there rest the cam-heads of levers m the axial pins of the levers being jointed to swinging links m secured to the breast of the casing. hen the camhead of a lever is placed in the seat m and the lever thrown inwardly, the cam head forces the hinged cover-section tightly down upon the edge of the receptacle, the edge of the cover being preferably provided with a suitable packing or gasket to make a tight joint. By having these fastening devices for the hinged covers connect directly with the annular breast A two desirable results are obtained, as follows: First, the strain of the fastening devices is made to come upon both the outer casing or tank and upon the inner or cream receptacle, and, secondly, the fastening devices are kept inside of the vertical line of the outer casing, where they are out of the Way and not liable to be struck or deranged.

In the side of the outer wall of the casing near the top there is an overflow-pipe L for water.

It is an air-inlet through which compressed air may be introduced on top of the cream to force the same through the outlet E and up through a connecting-pipe to a vessel located higher than the ripener.

In constructing the coils or gangs of the rotary circulation-pipes (marked Gin Fig. 1) I may, if desired, form them as shown in Figs. 4, 5, and 6. In Fig. L there is agang of parallel vertical tubes C communicating with horizontal tubes at top and bottom. The lower horizontal tube is divided longitudinally by a partition I), and transverse partitions (Z are arranged in the upper horizontal tube and also in the upper half of the lower horizontal tube above the longitudinal partition I). The cooling or heating medium then circulates through the tubes, as shown by the arrows, passing in zigzag path through the vertical tubes to those farthest from the center and returningin the lower horizontal tube through the space below the longitudinal partition Z), and thence escaping at the central bearing. In Fig. 5 the parallel tubes C of the gang are horizontal and the cooling or heating agent circulates out from the center course by transverse partions (Z in the hollow central shaft D. In Fig. 6 the coils C are somewhat as in Fig. 1, but the partitions (Z are arranged as in Fig. 5, and the circulation divides, passing to right and left at the same level. In all of these modifications the tubes of the coils or gangs are made of the crosssection shown in Fig. 7 of a generally ellip-' tical shape, flattened at the ends of the ellipse to a sharp edge, the longitudinal axis of the ellipse being parallel with the plane of revolution of the coils or gangs. This gives a larger cooling-surface per cubic contents, and as the tubes pass through the cream edgewise they require a smaller power for propelling the same.

The operation of my ripener is as follows; The cream-gate E being closed, the cream is introduced into the space within the receptacle B through the covers M until the receptacle is filled and the cream sin-rounds exteriorly and completely immerses the coil (1. Cold brine or ice-water is now introduced through the top of pipe 0 and passes down the hollow shaft 1) to the point (I and then traverses the interior of the coil (l and at the bottom issues through the hollow bearing l) B, and gaining the space below the bottom of the receptacle B rises between the same and outer casing A and escapes at the overflow ll, carrying away the absorbed heat of the cream. As the water passes through the coil is slowly revolved, which causes every portion of the cream to be reached by the cooling stream of waterin the coil, and which coil also acts as an agitator to thoroughly stir the cream and render it of uniform consistency and temperature. When the cream has been sulliciently treated, it is drawn off through the gate E. If instead of cooling the cream it is desired to warm it, steam is supplied through pipe F and this draws the water from the casing A through pipe F, and after heating it sends it through pipe F into the hollow shaft and the coil, where it raises the temperature of the cream. This closed circulation of warm water from the annular space between two walls of the ripener into the steamnozzle and through the hollow shaft and coil to the annular space again may be continued until the proper temperature and ripening effect are secured.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A liquid-ripener, comprising an outer casing, an inner receptacle having a space on its sides and bottom between it and the outer casing, a hollow vertical shaft within the receptacle bearing a gang of tubes, the upper end of which gang of tubes communicates with the upper end of the hollow shaft and the lower end of which gang communicates with the lower end of said hollow shaft, the upper and lower ends of said hollow shaft having no communication with each other except through the gang of tubes, a hollow slepbearing for the lower end of the shaft mounted on the bottom of the inner receptacle and effecting communication between the hollow shaft and the space beneath the said receptacle, means for rotating the shaft and gang of tubes, means for establishing a circulation of water through the tube to the space outside the receptacle, and an eccentrically located outlet for the receptacle opening through the bottom of the outer casing substantially as shown-' elliptical cross-section with the major axis of the ellipse parallel with the plane of revolution, and a hollowstep-bearing establishing communication between the said tubes and the space between the inner receptacle and outer casing substantially as and for the purpose described. 4

4:. A liquid-ripener, comprising a double- Walled receptacle, a vertical hollow rotary shaft carrying a gang of tubes communicating with the upper and lower ends of the shaft, an air-tight cover for the receptacle having an air-inlet through the same, a stufiing-box between the shaft and the cover, driving-v gears connected to the hollow shaft above the cover, a stuffing-box at the top of the rotary shaft, a stationary pipe entering said stuffingbox, a branch pipe with check valve connectedwith said stationary pipe, and a steaminjection nozzle connected to said branch pipe and to the space between the two Walls of the receptacle, substantially as described.

AAGE JENSEN.

Witnesses: FRANK T. BURNHAM JANETTE LONG. 

